Mattapoisett YMCA receives van in holiday donation

Dec 23, 2017

Over 300 children will receive bags of food this weekend, after the Mattapoisett YMCA received an unexpected donation to help deliver them—a van.

The Mattapoisett YMCA runs a program called N.O.W (Nutrition on Weekends), which provides over 300 children per week with a bag of food containing two breakfasts, two lunches, two vegetables, and two snacks—providing meals that may otherwise not be a possibility.

In early December, however, the Y found itself in a bit of a bind—it needed a van to help deliver the food bags, which go to two New Bedford-area schools.

Hoping for donations, Mattapoisett Y representatives contacted local radio station WBSM, who held a fundraiser at Sunrise Bakery and Coffee Shop in Dartmouth on Friday, December 15. The Amaral family, owners of the bakery, agreed to donate $500, as well as 25 percent of their morning sales proceeds to the N.O.W. Program.

The Amaral's donation, alongside the money raised from morning sales, brought in around $1,300 for the N.O.W program, according to Southcoast YMCA Marketing Director Kate Levin.

The money raised was combined with donations from customers, WBSM listeners calling in, and donations from other businesses and individuals in the area totaled  over $3,000 for the program.

The standout donation, though, belonged to the owners of Cottage Street Motors, based in New Bedford. The company's owners appeared at Sunrise Cafe during the morning, Levin said, and promptly offered the Mattapoisett Y representatives a deal.

Not only, they said, would they donate the difference between the money raised and the cost of the van, they would also donate the money raised back to the N.O.W. program to help feed more children in the future.